Chef Mil
Berkeley, CA
Female, 49
I have been working in restaurants in the San Francisco Bay Area for over 20 years (two of the restaurants had been in the SF Chronicle's Top 100 Restaurants). I have cooked mostly Mediterranean food, but have some experience with Asian food. I went to cooking school, and worked my way up from being a prep cook (think--prepping 3 cases of artichokes, de-boning 100 quail, and juicing a case of lemons!) to being a chef at a well known restaurant in my area. And no, I am not the yelling type! :)
Hello BNN, I like your name, btw. To me, probably pests. You know, creepy crawlies and rodents. I once worked at this restaurant where the owner was fanatically clean. This was the cleanest restaurant that I ever worked at, period. Yet, the restaurant was located in an old building that would had periodic leaks running down the walls which as you know, is a perfect recipe for grossness. One time one of the waiters told me she was talking to some customers at their table, and she spotted a cockroach on the wall next to them. She pretended to grab something while using some type of sleight of hand to knock it onto the floor. I mean, if I had seen that, I would've questioned the sanitary practices of that eating establishment!
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How are you, baron? Hope all is well. I think in Europe there are more barriers to women in high-end kitchens. From what I've read, even the males when they start out in high end kitchens, are treated brutally. I read "The Perfectionist: Life and Death in Haute Cuisine"; the young cook in the book would go home crying several times. For the women, the added sexism makes it doubly hard. Here in the US, there are a lot more women chefs, but cooking is a physically hard job. You're on your feet the whole time, you have to lift heavy things, and the speed of the line during the rush can be intimidating. I don't think most people have the personality, male or female, to work in a restaurant kitchen. Hmmm, I have to think about this more. Although I was the chef, I worked with all men in the last restaurant I worked (they were awesome, I loved working with them)! The women just didn't seem to work out.
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Hi Swanny, Very interesting question. I usually wanted to eat something very different than what I made, which was Spanish. So I'd want some Japanese or Indian food, for example. A lot of chefs I know like really simple food too like sandwiches, but of course, it has to be the best even if it is cheap and easy. We'll eat at the hot places just to be in the know and experience a colleague's food, however. After cooking in high-end restaurants, I wasn't always eager to eat at such places all the time.
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Hello est15, When I worked in the restaurant, I had access to better quality foods at a better price, but only because the restaurant chose and set up accounts with purveyors who had the good stuff. Otherwise, I shop at higher quality markets and at the local organic farmers' market close to me. Personally, I always pick the good stuff. :)
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Hi baron, I liked that movie. They did a good job; I heard that Thomas Keller, the famous chef from French Laundry helped with the movie. Since I live close to Pixar, I've worked in the space where they helped to make the "cooking" sections of that movie. Did you like it?
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Hi 7, Not sure if that is an American custom because I've seen in Europe where they serve the salad after. They do eat smaller portions there, so it works for them. I suspect here in America it's because people HAVE to eat their vegetables before the main event or else they won't eat them. It's hard to get people to eat their veggies sometimes. Can you split the salad with someone, so you'll have more room for the entree?
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Hi Amy, Tomatoes!!! Stone fruit, such as apricots. Oh yes, when tomatoes are in season I would make salmorejo, which is a type of gazpacho and tomato salads. As for stone fruit, I totally incorporate them into desserts or pair them with roasted duck. I know tomatoes are available the whole year, but those unseasonal tomatoes, I don't consider tomatoes. Yuck! :) Can you tell I love summer produce?
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